My Secret World
by saltoftheearth
Summary: There are those living among us that hold secrets of a world unlike any we have ever seen or known. Sometimes those secrets don't stay hidden...
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note: Here I am again (twice in one day, holy shmo!), posting a new story before finishing any of the others. I'm a lazy fart, I know it. Anyway - this one will be rather different than the other stories I have posted thus far. The idea popped into my head a while back and it wouldn't go away, so I figured I may as well write the danged thing down. So, here you go. It'll be confusing and at first, but hopefully I'll get around to explaining things eventually. Enjoy!**

_Thoughts in italics_

* * *

His feet were pounding against the ground. His lungs were burning. His heart was hammering in his chest. His muscles were screaming at him to stop. But he couldn't, not yet. The young man was running as though his life depended on it, only it wasn't _his_ life at stake. 

"Just a little bit more, almost there. Almost there." He chanted in between strained puffs of air.

He checked his watch as he ran, which nearly caused him to careen in to a tree headlong.

"Whoa!" He cried out, dodging the large maple and stumbling over a thick root protruding from the ground. In the dark, tree branches reached for him like disjointed limbs – one catching him on the cheek, tearing the skin. He barely winced, but continued on through the night.

_So close. Come on….please be there, please be there…_

He rounded a corner on his path and slid to a halt behind a hedge. Going down on one knee, he flung his backpack to the ground and carefully, but quickly, removed a heavy golden orb about twice the size of a softball and set it gently on the ground. As he placed his hand over the orb, he closed his eyes and a light began to emit from the orb and swirl out into the night. At the same time, a golden light shone from the young man's chest, through his clothing and joined the swirling light from the orb. He stiffened, his face contorting into a look of concentration and discomfort until the glow faded from his chest. Finally, the man opened his eyes to watch the gathering light. He sighed in relief and smiled.

"Oh, thank God. Just in time."

The light was forming a large barrier that was rapidly spreading. It stretched out to the sides, down to the ground, and up into the sky - creating what looked like a curved wall, stretching far past the treetops. As the wall expanded, another barrier became visible, reflecting the light of the new barrier. He sat this way until the light stopped spreading and began to diminish into tiny golden pinpricks of light.

He hadn't even given himself time to catch his breath before he grabbed his backpack and took off at a dead run again. Once he reached his destination, he crouched down behind another thick bush and repeated the process. He watched as the wall stretched to join with other one he had just created. He did this two more times until all four walls formed a complete dome of golden dust-like particles. An identical dome, just a 1/2 inch below the new one, could be seen reflected in its dim light. The young man wearily sat back to examine his work and smiled. The great, sparkling, golden dome completely encompassed several acres of land, including Sacred Heart Hospital and its parking lot. The tiny specs of golden light began to dwindle. Before the light was extinguished altogether, the old barrier seen in its reflection suddenly broke apart into minuscule light fragments. They fell like embers of a fireworks display toward the ground, disappearing before they reached land.

_Wow. I really cut it close this time. Just a minute later and it would have been unprotected. Well, unprotected for just a minute…but still. Too dangerous. I guess it's time to clean up._

He held his hands out to his sides and whispered, "come." Then he held one hand out in front of him and said the word again. After a minute, three orbs flowed through the air to him and he placed them back in his backpack along with the one sitting on the ground in front of him.

Exhausted from the night's activities, the young man allowed his body to collapse to the ground, onto his back. A quiet laugh escaped his lips and his eyes drifted closed.

_Well, that's done for one more month_, he thought, before giving into the sleep that was strongly enveloping him.

When he woke up, he immediately registered a creepy feeling that he was being watched. Sitting up abruptly he whipped his head around, but only saw a few trees and bushes gently swaying, and a quiet parking lot beyond the wooded area he was in. The feeling was still there, and he knew it wasn't one to be ignored as some trivial, meaningless sensation. His chest tightened in an all too familiar way and he was on his feet in a flash, turning in all directions. And still, he saw nothing.

He swept his arms in front of him, turning in place and shouted, "Reveal!" And still, he saw nothing. He kept looking, peering into the darkness. He didn't begin to relax until his eye settled on an almost imperceptible brush stroke of pink on the horizon. The sun was rising. Even then he was on his guard. Falling asleep outside in a unprotected area at night was not a very intelligent move, especially not for someone like him. He turned to pick up his backpack and noticed a small piece of wood on the ground that had not been there before he fell asleep.

The piece of wood looked ordinary on one side, but turning it over revealed that it was a message. Words in a neat cursive glowed red. As he read them, the color faded into a rich charcoal and smoke rose from the text.

**_J – _**

**_Falling asleep outside of the arch? Brilliant. You own me one, dingus. You're lucky I watch your back or you would be Giltch-Meat by now. Be careful. I mean it. Something is stirring._**

**_- E_**

"Elizabeth?" He gasped, whirling around once again.

"Elizabeth!" This time he called into the dim morning. "Damn it." He cursed under his breath and he snatched his backpack from the ground and took off in search of his invisible guardian. Pausing briefly here and there to get his bearings and hone his senses to track her, the young man ran as hard as he had the night before – calling her name.

After about 5 miles he lost her trail, and could no longer sense her. Frustrated, sweating, and painfully out of breath, he stopped without bothering to see where his race had taken him. He bent over, with his hands on his knees gasping for air.

"Damn it."

He allowed his shaky legs to rest and sat down right where he had stopped, grateful the sun had risen over the horizon.

"I gotta get back into shape," he gasped.

_This is pathetic. She's right. I'm way off my game._

Falling onto his back he raised the piece of wood in front of his face to read the message again, a smile ghosting his lips as his fingers gently ran over the letters burned into the wood.

_I do owe you one, Lizzy. I can't believe you didn't wake me up you little brat._

The smile faded into a worried frown when he reread the last sentence. _Something is stirring. What the hell does that mean?_

His thoughts were rudely interrupted by a loud blast of a car horn and the sound of screeching tires. With a shout of alarm, he scrambled to his feet and watched a familiar black Porsche come to an abrupt halt several yards away off the side of the road. _The road? Oh my gosh, I was lying in the middle of the road!_

A car door slammed and angry foot steps on the pavement grew closer.

"What the hell? Hey – what do you think you're….Newbie?"

_Oh crap._


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I don't own this, are you even kidding? I just like to play.**

**Now onto Chapter 2! I've tried to explain some things...I'm not sure, I may have just brought up more questions instead!**

**

* * *

**"Have you gone completely mental? Just why in God's name were you lying – LYING – in the MIDDLE OF THE GOD DAMN ROAD?! Jesus!"

Dr. Cox barreled toward a wide-eyed JD who instinctively backed away from the very angry, and very _tall _man.

"Uh…um…I…fell?

The older man raised his hand as though he were planning on lifting JD off the pavement by his shirt, but turned away at the last second and started pacing instead. JD thought it was probably the only way Dr. Cox was keeping from punching him…again.

"I could have hit you. I _almost _hit you…you…you worthless, little piece of…god damn…."

Dr. Cox started mumbling a string of what JD could only assume were insults and girls' names, but he could only catch a word or two. Every now and then Dr. Cox would get so mad that he became virtually unintelligible…and really…it was probably all for the best.

_Okay, apparently scaring the crap out of him by nearly causing him to run me over is not of the good. Note to self: Do not make a habit of lying in roads._

JD's head tilted toward the sky as he lost himself in a fantasy involving being tied up and left on train tracks – silent movie style. A train whistle is heard and the then the light comes into view. The train speeds toward JD, with an insane looking Dr. Cox as the conductor - sticking his head out the window like Ace Ventura and screaming "DIE, NEWBIE….DIIIIEEE!!"

JD snapped out of his fantasy with a shudder and he looked at Dr. Cox (who seemed to be winding down on his tirade) with fear.

"Oh, God – don't kill me!" He squeaked, shrinking back.

Dr. Cox looked at him with disgust and growled. He ran a shaky hand through his hair, and the movement was not lost on JD. For the first time since it happened he realized how serious this could have been, and how shaken up his mentor must be.

"Are you…okay?" JD ventured to ask. He received a glare and a snarl in response. "I'm sorry. I…I was…running and…tripped. Kind of an unfortunate place to trip, wouldn't you say? But it's a fine morning for a run-" He was rambling and couldn't stop, until Dr. Cox helped him out by interrupting him.

"You were _out for a morning run?_"

JD nodded nervously. Dr. Cox stepped back and gave the lad a quick visual appraisal. Still slightly out of breath. Check. Cheeks flushed. Check. Profusely sweating. Check. Wobbly legs. Check.

"You were running."

"Yes."

"At 6:30 in the morning."

"Yes."

"On your day off."

"Yes."

"Miles from your apartment."

JD looked around and realized he wasn't even exactly sure where he was. "Uh….yes?"

Dr. Cox raised an eyebrow and looked the kid over again. "How many miles?"

"Hm?"

"How. Many. Miles were you running?"

"Oh, um…I don't…err…maybe…5…ish?"

Dr. Cox watched JD scratch the back of his neck and look around. He took note of the clothes he was wearing, the same ones he was wearing at the bar the night before. He noticed the bloodshot eyes, the backpack, pieces of leaves in his hair, the cut on his cheek, and what was he doing holding a random piece of bark? Something wasn't adding up. But since he was Dr. Cox, he couldn't really bring himself to care…much.

"Uh-huh. Morning run. Sure thing. Now get in the car."

"Um…what? Why?"

"Newbie, I am now probably going to be late to work, thanks to your idiocy, and I think you owe me one for _not _running you over…something I'm sure I'll regret later. You are coming to work today and doing my paperwork for me so I'm not stuck there until midnight, got it?"

JD's eyes widened in panic.

_No! I can't go into work! Not the day after the erection of the arch! Hee hee… _"erection." _Hee hee._

"Excuse me?"

_Oh shit. I said that out loud didn't I?_

"Nothing."

Dr. Cox scoffed and turn to head back to his car. "Newbie, come."

Despite himself, JD jogged after the older man.

"But, it's my day off!" _I did not just whine._

Dr. Cox said nothing and got into the driver's seat, slamming the door. JD stood outside clutching the straps of his backpack, which he just now realized felt extremely heavy with the four orbs in there. His mind was whirling with how to handle this situation. Dr. Cox wasted no time in rolling the window down and barking at the kid to get in the car.

"No, no. You don't understand. I _can't _go into work today!"

_Not unless you want me passing out on top of my patients and accidentally killing people because I'm so exhausted._

The monthly ritual always took a lot out of the young man. His chest was already starting to ache from it, as it always does. You can't literally emit light and energy from your inner being with enough strength to build a protective barrier that size and not have physical consequences the following day – even with the combined energy of the orbs. Add to that the stress of nearly being late to perform the ritual, having to run all the way there from the bar, and then running for several miles as soon as he woke up only a handful of hours later – and you get a JD on the verge of collapse. Today he was going to need some major recovery, especially if something were to go down in the night.

"Okay, _boy wonder_, you do not get the luxury of telling me what you can and can't do. You nearly got us both killed this morning and I've only had one cup of coffee. Get. In. The. Car."

Forgetting momentarily his plight, and focusing only on the happy fact that Dr. Cox had called him "boy wonder", JD got into the Porsche with a wide grin.

"Oh, wipe that shit eating grin off your chinless face, would you please?"

They sat in silence for several minutes. JD spent those minutes worriedly chewing on his bottom lip and fiddling with the piece of wood Elizabeth had left for him. Dr. Cox spent them clutching the wheel and staring hard at the road in from on him. Finally the curly haired doctor glanced at his passenger. The doctor in him couldn't help but look closer at the scratch on the kid's face. It was quite long, but it looked shallow enough. It had bled, but had long stopped, so JD couldn't have gotten it when he tripped in the road.

"You look ridiculous." Dr. Cox finally said.

JD tried to look himself over, and couldn't see anything ridiculous. "What?"

Dr. Cox reached over and pulled a leaf out of JD's hair and threw it out the window.

"You look like you got in a wrestling match with a wood nymph."

"Pfft. Not likely. They wouldn't come this far west." JD replied casually.

Dr. Cox stared at him as though the kid was crazy.

"Ooookay. Given the fact that you just had a near death experience and I'm feeling oddly generous, I'm just going to let that one go."

JD finally realized what had just transpired, and tried his best to hide his cringe at his slip up. _What is my problem? I need a better brain to mouth filter._

"And quit fiddling with that damned bark!" Dr. Cox suddenly yanked the piece of wood out of JD's hands and before JD had a chance to react he heaved it out the window.

"No!" JD cried out and turned around in his seat to watch his precious message bounce across the pavement and into a ditch. He began to wildly look around to try to memorize exactly where it had gone off the road.

"Oh you have got to be kidding me." Dr. Cox grumbled at the younger man's odd reaction. "You have an attachment to a piece of tree?"

JD couldn't bring himself to respond right away. He had only seen Elizabeth a few times in six years, and he had always cherished anything she gave him. Yes. At the moment he did have an attachment to a piece of tree.

"It was…a friend gave it to me."

"Oh. The wood nymph. So you weren't wrestled so much as rolling in the hay. I see." At least Dr. Cox looked more amused now than angry.

JD involuntarily shuddered at the thought of doing anything sexual with a wood nymph, but had to bite his tongue before he said anything else about it. _Tiny little creatures with huge feet and big noses and sharp teeth. _Besides, he felt so tired all of a sudden. He really didn't feel like forming words anyway. He simply sighed, and pretended to look out the window while closing his eyes instead. This was going to be a long day.

**Same day, approximately 12:30pm.**

_Freedom at last!_

Dr. Cox finally had mercy on JD and let him leave after making him work through lunch. It may have had something to do with walking in on him fast asleep on the pile of paperwork twice and the pained look that seemed to be lodged in place on the kid's face.

_I knew he cared._ JD thought happily as the large doors to Sacred Heart closed behind him. His happiness didn't last long, however. A glance at the parking lot reminded him that he didn't have his beloved scooter with him. It was still at his apartment. He winced as he took a few steps and rubbed his chest. It hadn't stopped aching all day, and had only gotten worse. Knowing it would go away with time wasn't helping him at the moment. The pain was beginning to be almost unbearable and there were times it would literally take his breath away. He would have called a cab if he had thought to bring his wallet.

It took him two hours, but JD eventually dragged himself home to his small apartment four miles away from the hospital. It only took him two seconds to flop face down onto his bed and fall into a deep sleep.

**_"Come on Jay!"_**

**_A young woman, possibly in her late teens or early twenties called over her shoulder as she ran through the trees. She was laughing and smiling as she gracefully leapt over fallen trees and rocks in her path. The sun's rays peaked through the branches, catching her long wavy hair in it's light as she ran. It was golden brown with highlights of every color hair you could imagine. It nearly sparkled. She wore a red scarf with green and brown leaf patterns in that gorgeous hair. It slowly slid down her head until it fell out completely, fluttering toward the ground._**

**_"And waste this view?!"_**

**_JD ran behind her, moving just as gracefully through the rural landscape. He was younger, about the same age as the young woman. She glanced back to laugh at his comment and saw her scarf about to land on the ground, but JD had seen it first. With a subtle flick of the wrist, the scarf obeyed his command and floated back up and into his waiting palm. With a wink, he deposited the scarf swiftly into his pocket without breaking his stride._**

**_The woman laughed again - a carefree, hearty laugh that found its roots in her very core. Just the sound of it made JD smile and his heart soar. Just to be near her made him feel at peace and completely happy._**

**_"That's some trick, Merlin." She called to him while deftly dodging an old oak tree. Suddenly she picked up her pace and widened the gap between them. "But I'm still faster than you!"_**

**_She was right. She was faster. That fact didn't bother JD, though. He didn't mind trailing behind her one bit. He knew perfectly well what her strengths were, as well as his own weaknesses. _**

**_Just ahead JD could see a clearing in the trees that meant they were nearing the "finish line" of their impromptu race. He didn't mind being beaten by a girl (especially this girl), but even he wouldn't turn down an opportunity to impress her. JD glanced at his surroundings in a second and soundlessly leapt up, grabbed a low hanging tree branch and swung his slender body up onto the branch. Stealthily, he jumped and swung from tree to tree (barely fighting off the urge to practice his Tarzan impression) until he made it to the edge of the clearing and dropped softly to the grass just as the girl broke the tree line. He crossed his arms and put on his best, most charming smile._**

**_Seeming surprised, but amused, the young woman smiled and shook her head._**

**_"You cheated."_**

**_"Did not!" He inwardly cringed and the childlike comeback, but continued on, "You never said what kind of race this was. It's not my fault I've got mad skills!" _**

**_She smirked and shrugged, "You're just over compensating for your lack of speed." She stated simply with a twinkle in her eyes as she walked past him into the clearing and lied down in the inviting grass on her back._**

**_JD scratched his head and watched her walk away (one of his favorite things to do) before jogging up to her and lying down next to her, folding his hands under his head as a pillow. He could feel his shirt creep up exposing an inch of his stomach, but he didn't bother to tug it back down. The warm sun on his skin felt too good. He closed his eyes, with a smile on his lips and just soaked up the warmth and the companionship of the girl beside him. They were quite a distance from camp, but the sun was high in the sky and it would be a good eight hours before sundown – plenty of time to enjoy themselves on their day off from training._**

**_"How did you do that?" Her voice interrupted JD's thoughts._**

**_"What?" He asked, not bothering to open his eyes._**

**_"That trick with the scarf. I've seen you do things like that before."_**

**_JD cracked open one eye to see her propped up on an elbow staring at him curiously. He opened both eyes and thought for a moment before answering._**

**_"I'm not sure how I do it. I…well…I guess I kind of manipulated the wind currents to carry the scarf to me."_**

**_The girl regarded him for a moment. "Can you teach me?" _**

**_"It's just something I discovered I could do. I wouldn't know how to teach someone else how to it. I don't understand it myself."_**

**_"Dr. Gerard didn't teach you?" She sat up completely now._**

**_"The Sheriff of Fartingham? Pfft. No." JD giggled. _**

**_"You're awful!" She laughed, swatting his arm playfully. "He's going to hear you one of these days, and I'll be guilty by association!" She looked around, suddenly appearing to be quite paranoid. "You never know…he could have spies out here right now. They say he employees eagles to tattle on us delinquents."_**

**_JD chuckled. "I wouldn't doubt it." He thought for a few seconds. "He did seem to know something about it though…my…abilities. He's tried to help me hone them some, but as far as I can tell he can't do it himself. Maybe after some more lessons I'll be able to teach you." He said hopefully. Lord knows he would always want to give her anything she ever wanted._**

**_For a split second JD could have sworn she looked at him will a bit of awe, but it was gone in a flash and replaced by her usual carefree smirk._**

**_"I still say you were over compensating." She said, lying back down onto the grass. "You and your mad skills…" she mumbled._**

**_JD smiled and closed his eyes again. "I'm keeping the scarf you know."_**

**_"I know."_**

**_"It's my prize. My victory trophy."_**

**_"Mmm Hmm."_**

**_"I don't think I have any room in my case for it, though…I might have to-"_**

**_"Shut up, I'm trying to enjoy the sun."_**

**_JD laughed, but quieted down anyway. He clasped his hands on his stomach and took a deep breath. This was perfect. There wasn't any place he'd rather be than right here, next to her. His Elizabeth. _**

**_Suddenly, through his closed eyelids he could see the world darken. Before he could even open his eyes to see what was blocking the sun's rays, his stomach clenched in fear, the hair on the back of his neck stood on end, and his back arched involuntary off the ground as his arms stiffened and threw themselves to the ground at his sides._**

**_"GAH!" JD gasped, his breath momentary gone. It sounded like buzzing in his head and his entire body began to burn._**

**_"Jay? JOHN?!" He could hear Elizabeth's voice near him, but found he couldn't respond. Then, even her cries grew faint, as though she had been carried off somewhere. His eyes flew open by a power not his own and he found that he was no longer in that green, open field. The world around him was blackened and scorched. The smell of smoke stung his nostrils and made his eyes water. _**

**_"Elizabeth?" He called into the barren landscape. Slowly he was able to rise to his feet. Looking around, he could tell that there were once buildings and trees here. It couldn't have been that long ago that they had been burned and turned to ruins. He wandered forward, as in a daze. He was looking for something, but he couldn't remember what. A familiarity was tugging at the corners of his mind._**

_I know this place**, he thought.**_

**_"AH!" He screamed when something clamped around his ankle. He tried to pull free, but whatever had a hold of him was too strong, and he fell hard to the ground. Waving the thick clouds of smoke away, he made out a small human hand clutching is ankle. _**

**_"H-hello?" JD whispered. "Do you need help?"_**

**_A figure rose from the ground, never letting go of his ankle. It was a small child. A girl._**

**_"Oh my God, are you hurt?"_**

**_He tried to move closer to her, but something stopped him from moving from his prone position on the ground._**

**_The child opened her mouth to speak and a voice that sounded like the oldest man, and the youngest child at once came out._**

**_"The wait is almost over."_**

**_"Wh…what?"_**

**_"The cloak will fall, all will be revealed. The protector of many will meet his end."_**

**_The girl released his ankle and the ground disappeared from under him._**

**_"AHHH!"_**

"AHHHHH!"

JD sat up with a gasp. He was sweating and grabbing the air around him desperately. Slowly he realized that he was safe in his own room and his breathing began to even out. He groaned and buried his face in his hands.

_Another one of those damned dreams._

He had been having those lately. They always started off with a pleasant memory, usually of Elizabeth, and then morphed into some crazy nightmare with beasts, and fire, and sometimes a warning. He knew they weren't just random dreams. He knew they were trying to tell him something. He thought of the message Elizabeth had written him the night before.

**_Be careful. I mean it. Something is stirring._**

He believed her. Something was stirring. He just couldn't figure out what it was and what it meant. He hadn't had one of his "visions" in years. He had one in his dream, sure, but that didn't count. Since he was 5 years old he had been having them. His parents thought they were seizures and they took him to a neurologist. His neurologist, Dr. Gallen, told them he had epilepsy, but it was a lie – and Dr. Gallen knew it. Dr. Gallen was "one of them" and he recognized that JD was too. He was the first one of his kind that JD met. JD called them "transcendental warriors", Dr. Gallen simply called them "the others". JD would learn over the next year through frequent visits to his doctor that they were all over the world, living and working in all sorts of professions. Sometimes there were whole families of them, and sometimes (as in JD's case) there was no genetic component.

Dr. Gallen taught him the basics. "The others" were humans, just like everyone else and very much mortal. But, they were also quite special. They could see and interact with a whole other realm that the rest of the world did not know existed. The other realm, as far as he knew did not have a formal name. It was a part of the Earth, too…just…a different level. JD liked to call it "Mildred" after an old elementary school teacher that he could have sworn was from another planet.

Their purpose primarily was to keep that separation between the two worlds, and to protect mankind from the dangers the other world held. "The others" often had certain abilities or powers to help them in their tasks. JD found over the years that he could manipulate nature in certain ways, including his own body. He is also a seer, one of very few. As he got older and went through the proper training, he learned how to interpret his visions. But his dreams were a different story. They weren't as clear as his waking visions, and they weren't as easy to interpret. They were more like coded messages that sometimes got jumbled in his subconscious. He hadn't had a waking vision in six years, and was thankful for it. They were painful, frightening, and exhausting. He had never had one in front of anyone he currently knew, and hadn't bothered telling anyone about his epilepsy, fake as it was. Mostly, he was afraid of how that would affect how Dr. Kelso would let him work. Since it seemed like his seer abilities had vanished, JD didn't see a reason to start that particular lie.

All of "the others" once identified were sent to training camps throughout their childhood and teen years. They were held during the summer months. To "regular" parents they were under the guise of typical summer camp themes like "Theater Camp" and "Future Scientists of America Camp". That's where JD had met Elizabeth. They had trained together since they were seven years old. Unlike JD, everyone in her immediate family was a "transcendental warrior". They were always stationed together and had been a fighting team until about six years earlier when JD was relocated. All of them were assigned to areas around the world to guard and protect. Elizabeth and JD were such a strong team, and all his life JD had been singled out as being special, so the two were given assignments in the most dangerous of areas – the Mildred Hot-Beds as JD called them. He was still completely perplexed as to why he was relocated to such a quiet spot. Not much happened around Sacred Heart or the surrounding areas. He tried to find out why from his professors and superiors, but they didn't have a whole lot to say on the subject and seemed to become very irritable and cross with him when he brought it up. In his heart, JD knew that without his seer gifts, he wasn't as useful to them despite his skills in fighting. Although relieved to not have to walk around wondering when the next vision would strike, he had always felt punished by his current assignment.

The hair on the back of JD's neck stood on end, which signaled to him that something from the other realm was near. He rolled his eyes and glanced at the clock while sliding his feet into the worn sneakers he always kept near the bed. The angry red letters of his clock glowed back at him – 2:08am.

"Damn it." He muttered. Just a few more hours and it would have been sunrise. Creatures from Mildred never came out in daylight. They weren't always harmful, and it wasn't every night that JD was called to action because of a cross over from Mildred. Lately it had begun to pick up, however. It was just another piece of the puzzle that was beginning to form in his mind. He wished that he had a chance to write down his dream while it was still fresh in his mind so he could tell Dr. Gallen about it. The man hadn't been his teacher for a long time, but according to JD he was still the best at interpreting his dreams and visions.

_Well, this should be another fabulous day. _ He thought, grabbing his backpack and sweatshirt and heading out of his apartment to see what sort of beastie he would have to deal with tonight. He hoped it would be just be an unruly Giltch or some other small and easy to subdue creature. He was still feeling the effects of the previous morning, and without his former partner to help him, even a Giltch could prove challenging this time around. A Giltch was a nasty little beast and the most common creature from Mildred around JD's area. They had no speech and weren't very intelligent. They were short, hunched over things and covered in black hair. You had to really watch out for their teeth and razor-like claws. They seemed to always be hungry and could usually be found rummaging through restaurant dumpsters or stalking out door pets. They were scared of humans, and very rarely went into buildings. But, they could sense "the others" and didn't seem to be scared of them at all. In fact, JD was convinced Giltches thought of people like him as prey or food. Still, they were pretty easy to dispatch. _Especially with Elizabeth around_, he thought bitterly.

Seeing the faint pink hue on the horizon helped to melt JD's bitter mood. Even if it was something bigger and stronger than a Giltch, JD wouldn't have a long battle ahead of him. Chances are, with sunrise so close, by the time he found what he was looking for it would already be crossing back over to it's home. It was with that comforting thought that he closed his eyes and let his senses take over, telling him where to go.

_Let's get this over with…_


End file.
